A New View
“The world has never been so wide,” I whisper. Hugo barks in reply. I laugh and rub his head. Stargazing is a new practice for me, having lived in a city for much of my life, but this is amazing.
“We’ve been missing out, Hugo.” I say seriously, looking down at my dog. He meets my eyes, his tail flashing in the corner of my vision. I smile at him, lying down in the cool grass. He joins me, flopping down with his body pressed against mine, his big head nestled in the crook of my armpit. I can feel his tongue against my bicep as we lie there, silent, watching the stars glimmer over us. Lighting bugs, another thing that doesn’t occur in the city, flash their bright bottoms in the grass. Hugo watches them suspiciously.
The trees lining the field glisten with warm summer light and rain. I can feel the beginnings of a misting rain dancing around my face. I breathe deep, closing my eyes against the brightness of the stars. Hugo nudges my hand and I turn to look at him. His mouth is open, pulled up in a smile.
“This is the life.”
— Lee, Haddonfield Friends School
The Vast World
In the warm, humid summer air, the low buzzing of cicadas and chirps of crickets plays in the background. The fireflies’ comforting glow reminds me that I’m not alone. A light breeze comes by, causing the leaves to rustle and lifting my hair off my shoulders. With the cool, dewy grass against my back, I gaze up at the endless sky, locating the Big Dipper and Little Dipper. How can I be sad when there’s a vast world out there, beyond my life and my worries?
— K, Hoggard High School in Wilmington, NC
A Perfect Holiday
On Fourth of July last year, we went to a friends back yard to watch the fireworks. The moon was a crescent in the sky giving us perfect darkness for the fireworks. From the corner of my eye, I spotted a meteor across the sky. The sounds of the fireworks woke the fireflies. They were dancing like stars in the grass and trees. Lo and behold what a sight!
— Anushka, Monroe Woodbury Middle School, NY
The Embrace of the Galaxy
A mind stirring, directionless and pondering.
Straight was the path before him, yet all around was fuzzy.
The concrete was bitter, the lights were loud.
He waded through the monotone colors
Wondering where he had to go.
Atop that hill, next to a field all too familiar –
It seemed so new to him all the same.
To his left, he heard shouting; then he looked down
Three young lads, around his age, having a time.
Down in the painted, rusty playground
That seemed like home
Is that all there is?
Can I really just go down and say hello?
He pondered what three young boys could even be doing,
Out so late in such a strange place.
That was the void though, the one that often came with him:
Loneliness.
He yearned for their attention, yet felt safe atop the hill.
He waded into the field of maroon grass.
Am I really happy here, in this field on the hill?
He looked to the sky and stopped.
There were perhaps hundreds, no, thousands of stars
All dotted across a pink and navy canvas.
He was not sad then.
He was not necessarily happy either;
Or confused to say the least.
He understood.
He understood that was not so bad in the field.
He understood how those boys felt to have companions.
He understood that it was alright to be alone>
And no loneliness would be the same again.
As the stars began to either multiply or speed up –
And he cared not for what they were doing –
That lone boy did not feel so lonely anymore.
Submerged in the embrace of all the galaxy,
He woke up.
— Maximilian, Glenbard West HS, Glen Ellyn
Ode to Night
I sing the praises
To an unspoken peace.
Everything is still,
Quiet, shrouded in dark
As if coated in ink.
The moon’s pale gaze,
Fireflies’ beam,
Starlights’ caress.
A celestial body streaks past.
Beware not of blight,
In my ode to Night.